Not surprisingly, no Nigerian player made the list, but Mikel Obi made the substitute bench for his exploits at Euro 2016, Ballon d'or winner C.Ronaldo was included for his heroics at Euro 2016 with Portugal and champions league success with Real Madrid while Jamie Vardy starts upfront in my team of the year.
See the World football team of the year 2016 below, and say whether you agree or not (with reasons)..
Formation : 4-3-3
Goalkeeper : David De Gea: His breathtaking saves were the major reason Man U ended in top 7 last season and also won the F.A cupand what makes his success so remarkable is the fact that he turned around to snub a Madrid move and refocused on his Old Trafford career. De Gea simply put, makes saves, dives and flies that even birds could dream of, no wonder he's been votes Man U's player of the season for three years in a row.
Defenders : Sergio Ramos, Pepe, Wes Morgan, Marcelo
Sergio Ramos' inclusion is no-brainer actually! Apart from the fact he's a defensive stalwart, a no-nonsense defender who can actually play three different positions, his very crucial goals for Real Madrid have helped the club win the Champions league, Club World Cup and very crucial matches. Wes Morgan together with Huth helped Leicester city have a defensive line up that ensured the won the EPL title. Morgan is highly under-appreciated, but real football lovers know a good defender when they see one.
Pepe, with his full throttle approach towards defending, helped Portugal and Real Madrid win the Euros and champions league while Marcelo is undoubtedly still the best left full back in the world.
Midfielders: N'Golo Kante, Kevin De Bruyne, Iniesta
This was the hardest category to choose because there are a lot of talented footballers that play in midfield who deserve to be here but aren't. De Bruyne can easily be classed among the best midfielders in the world this 2016 for his great performances with Belgium and most especially Man City who he helped to win the League cup.
Kante, the bedrock and solidity of Leicester city in their title winning season is undoubtedly the best defensive midfielder in world football at the moment. He's now playing for Chelsea and the likes of Mikel Obi, Matic and Oscar had to be sacrificed because of how well he shields the defence line for Chelsea, and France too! . Iniesta, a midfield general is included for his title winning forays in midfield for Barcelona even though he will admit it's not been the best of years for Barcelona or Spain.
Strikers : Cristiano Ronaldo, Jamie Vardy , Lionel Messi
Jamie Vardy- from being a technician making medical splints in 2006, to the man who led Leicester city to a record breaking premier league title, beating Van Nistelrooy's goals record in the process.He deserves to be in this team of the year list.
Lionel Messi had a not too good year judging by his standards, but led Barca to
La Liga and Copa Del Rey titles. He retired from national duty after failing to lead Argentia to national glory at Copa America but later revoked his retirement. For scoring 51 goals in 2016, he makes the team of the year list.
Coach of the year : Claudio Ranieri (Leicester city)/ Fernando Santos (Portugal)
Claudio Ranieri is tied with Fernando Santos in this category for two reasons;
1. They could have achieved less and no one would have complained or blamed them for doing so.
2. They both won very important trophies with squads that were average except one or two star players. They injected the spirit of unity, passion and never-say-die attitude into their players, hence their team's success.
Player of the year : Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid/Portugal)- The Real Madrid player really has no competition in the world of football this year. Apart from winning the UEFA Champions league and Euro Cup with Real Madrid and Portugal respectively, he also won the Club World Cup in Japan this December and has also won the 2016 Ballon D'or award.
He also showed exceptional leadership qualities during the Euro cup finals, as he came back to the pitch to motivate/coach his teammates till the last minute despite being stretchered off the pitch for a serious knee injury. Exceptional player!
Team of the year Substitutes/bench:
Laurent Koschielny (France/Arsenal),Gareth Bale (Real Madrid/Wales), Antoinne Griezmann (France/ Atl. Madrid), Iniesta (Barcelona/Spain), Leonardo Bonnucci (Juventus/Italy), Luis Suarez (Barcelona/Uruguay), Neymar (Barcelona/ Brazil), Alexis Sanchez (Arsenal/Chile), Manuel Neuer (B.Munich, Germany), Mikel Obi (Nigeria/Chelsea), Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City/ Algeria), Paul Pogba (Juventus/Man U/ France)Luka Modric (Real Madrid/Croatia), Andres Gomes (Portugal/Barca). Thibaut Courtois (Chelsea/ Belgium), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (PSG/ Man U/ Sweden)
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